That's what incumbent Suzan DelBene's (D-WA, 1) staff told us yesterday. "We've been saying for months that [Celis] is way too conservative for the 1st [Congressional District]," said campaign manager Viet Shelton. "This is evidence that he's committed to shoring up his Tea Party base."

But Werrell's Virginia primary cohort Gray Delany, who is now Celis' spokesperson, denies this. He told PubliCola this afternoon that Werrell’s involvement in Celis’ campaign signals nothing more than determination to play a tough ground game. “There’s no ideological shift in the campaign,” Delany says. “Zach has extensive experience in grassroots organizing.” His addition to the team will “bring in some additional horsepower” to Celis’ drive toward office, Delany added.

To have a shot at beating DelBene, Celis needs a boost. Whether Werrell and Delany can provide that boost—through a top notch field game, as they claim they're bringing, or through an ideological makeover, as the Democrats allege—remains to be seen.

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